


Just Ask

by Anonymous



Category: Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Cartoon 2018), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - All Media Types
Genre: Exactly What It Says on the Tin, F/M, Kissing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-28
Updated: 2020-07-28
Packaged: 2021-03-06 06:28:38
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,681
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25578847
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: Wherein Donnie really wants to kiss April but doesn't know how to ask for it.
Relationships: Donatello/April O'Neil (TMNT)
Comments: 11
Kudos: 83
Collections: Anonymous





	Just Ask

Donnie blew out a quick huff of air as he concentrated on the work before him. He’d been holed up in his workshop for hours, diligently and tirelessly finishing up some phone upgrades for April. April’s phone may or may not have been collateral damage during one of their famous NYC Cannonball Dives, soaked beyond comprehension in the splash as the girl posed for a selfie. 

Donnie cringed outwardly at the memory, lamenting not only at the destruction of a perfectly good piece of tech but also at his friend’s loss. That day, the usually bouncy puffs of hair that sat atop April’s head drooped with the weight of the water and her mood, only serving to make her look even sadder. He scooped up the soggy phone in an instant, proclaiming that it would be an easy fix and that he would have it ready for her by 7 pm that evening, right after dinner and right before family movie night (it was Mikey’s turn to pick, he was very excited). 

Donnie squinted and straightened his back, craning his neck to look at the digital clock on the wall. “Oh shit, it’s already 7?” he murmured to himself, idly rubbing his neck to work out some of the stiffness there. He clutched the now repaired phone in his hand, turning it over to inspect it for any imperfections.

There would be none, of course, but it’s always good to double check.

Donnie set down the phone gently and nodded, satisfied with his work. The engineer idly drummed his 3 fingers on his desk, he really did hope April liked the changes he’s implemented. The turtle let out a sigh as he allowed himself to imagine what his friend’s reaction would be; he hoped she’d say thank you at least 4 times and give him a fist bump while yelling about how awesome he is in a way that is so uniquely _April_ that he can’t help but love her even more because of it. Maybe she’ll give him a hug, wrap her thin arms around him as best as she could and _squeeze_ just to let him know that she was there. Or maybe…

Donnie gulped, heart skipping a beat. “Maybe she’ll kiss me…” he said to the empty air around him. The engineer glanced at the phone briefly and covered his mouth with his hand. “I really hope this one does the trick.” 

For the past 2 weeks, 13 hours, and 11 minutes ( _No,_ he has absolutely _not_ been keeping track), Donatello has been trying to get April O’Neil to kiss him. He’s tried doing everything, getting her candy, helping her with her calculus homework, watching over Mayhem; all in hopes that April would kiss him at least once in gratitude, but each attempt ended the same: with him disappointed and kissless.

He shifted in his seat, was this not how it worked? Don’t people exchange physical affection for goods and services? The ninja sighed, reflecting on his past experiences. They’ve kissed several times before, moments that lasted mere seconds but have had Donnie thinking about them for countless hours every night before he went to bed. He furrowed his thick brows, recalling the time April kissed his cheek after he remembered to get her her favorite milkshake from the Hidden City. The time he received a chaste peck on his shoulder when April came behind him and caught him off guard, wanting to tell him that dinner was ready and they got his favorite. The time April was painting his nails and when she took the time to admire her work, she gently lifted his hand and placed a kiss on the back of his palm. The time April kissed him in the middle of the den while they were passing by one another on the way to the kitchen “just ‘cuz”. 

Donnie loved April’s kisses, Donnie loved _April_. He’s wanted to kiss her again, one hundred thousand times _again_ , but he doesn’t have the slightest clue how to ask for it. He was careful, he was cool, he always allowed April to initiate and never dared to do the same. He’s read thousands of articles, textbooks, and academic papers but none of them, absolutely _none_ of them, have been able to tell him how to love properly.

He grimaced, or how to _be_ loved properly, at that.

He didn’t know how to ask for these things, didn’t know how to allow himself to be selfish and take the love that he was given. He didn’t know how to allow himself to be vulnerable, how to take off the armor and trust that he wouldn’t get hurt. 

He didn’t know, he didn’t know, he didn’t _know._

Wasn’t he supposed to know everything? Was it not his job to miraculously fix everything with his outstanding wit? To know every fact of life, down to the most obscure and asinine details?

It was.

“Then why the fuck can’t I figure this out?” he sighed, shuttering his eyes. 

Donnie jumped when he heard a knock at his workshop door, effectively pulling himself out of the hole he was digging himself into and placing him right back where he’s always been, in his workshop waiting for April. 

“Right on time, huh?” he smiled, “Come on in!” he yelled, loud enough to ensure that April got the message through the thick metal of the door. 

“Hey Donnie!” April grinned as she stepped through the door and she looked back to see it sweep close with a soft _fwshh._ “Damn that’s cool!” she cried.

“You done with my phone?” she asked curiously, looking at him with big, hopeful eyes.

“Do you even need to ask?” the engineer smirked, swiveling around in his desk chair to fully look at his friend. He peered at her behind the thick layers of his tech goggles, the heterochromatic lenses making him look comically buggish. “Check it out.” he tossed her the phone and his eyes traced her lips as they fell into a surprised “o” at the incoming device, noting the pretty shade of red they were. Donnie got April a new lipstick from the Hidden City, a bright shade of red that matched her arched glasses perfectly. He hoped _that_ if anything would have gotten her to kiss him, to test out its staying power and to see just what it would look like up against the olive tone of his skin (it didn’t). 

April held her new phone in her small hands, feeling the weight of it in her palms. She pressed a button and turned on the screen, delighted to see her luminous lock screen staring back at her. Donnie shifted his goggles to rest at the top of his crown and looked down at the screen with a fond smile, remembering the day April took that photo of them. 

He remembered how the brunette ran up to him, bragging about how she _finally_ beat his high score in Pac-Man. The two were feuding about their high scores for weeks, April continuously coming infinitesimally close to beating Donnie’s all time high score and ultimately failing each time. 3 weeks, a pack of G Fuel, and 2 joysticks later, April triumphed, leaving Donnie defeated. He sighed heavily, he’d never admit it, but he thought April’s score was truly impressive and she worked tirelessly to achieve it. After weeks of battling, the brunette finally defeated his contender of 2,345,2745 points by a whopping, he squinted, 15 points.

April danced circles around her sulking friend, knowing that it burned him to have lost by such a tiny margin. While immortalizing her victory in the game’s leaderboard, she programmed the message “EAT MY ASS DONNIE” to accompany her score, leaving it to taunt him forever at the top of the leaderboard.

April put an arm around his shoulder and turned him around, posing for a selfie, pointedly ensuring that the scoreboard was in frame. “Smile, loser!” she said cheerfully.

“Nope!” Donnie shook his head. “I will not accept this defeat with neither poise nor rationality! Mark my words, O’Neil. You will be defeated!” the turtle playfully dipped his brows and scowled, crossing his arms before sticking his tongue out rudely as he stared directly into the camera. April rolled her eyes and snapped the picture, placing a kiss on her friend’s scowling face right after. 

Donnie blinked, pulling himself out of the memory.

“Oh,” he thought, “guess I forgot about that one.”

“Oh, Donnie! You’re a lifesaver!” April cried joyously and bumped his offered fist before pulling him into a hug, “Thank you! Thank you, thank you, thank you!”. 

“Of course, no scale off my shell.” Donnie smiled, pleased as punch, because he _knew_ April would react exactly like this. He went down the checklist in his mind, checking off imaginary boxes as he went. “Okay, got the fist bump and praise, check. Quadruple thank you, check. Hug, mega check. Now that just leaves…”

“MMMWAH!” Donnie was ripped from his thoughts and his eyes snapped to April in surprise. She clutched her phone with both of her hands and dropped several big kisses onto its screen. “I love you, baby!” she said in between kisses. “I’ll take better care of you, I promise!” she placed another kiss onto the screen. Donnie callously noted that god had a sense of humor and he did _not_ like it.

“Oh come on!” he mentally cried, crossing his arms. “The phone? The _phone!?_ Why is she kissing the phone!? I can compute circles around that thing!” he sighed and looked down, dejected and defeated. “Jesus Christ, I’m jealous of a phone. That’s a new low.” 

“‘Mglad you like it,” he murmured and April bobbed her head up and down excitedly, causing her twin buns to bounce cutely with the movement.

“I LOVE it! Look at how smoothly it runs! And this camera! Oh and the...hey, what’s wrong?” April stopped her babbling and looked at her friend, who was looking notably more sad than he was a couple of moments ago. “Donnie?”

“It’s nothing,” he said quickly. Too quickly, April thinks. “It’s just…” he slotted his fingers together, anxiously fidgeting as he looked anywhere but April’s concerned gaze. “Do you...do you not like my designs? Or is there something you would like _more?_ ” he anxiously shifted. “Do you have anything else you’d want to improve? I’ll do it! I can make it better, there are so many things wrong with my design, aren’t there?”

April began to panic as she looked at her crumbling friend. She lifted her hands to hover over Donnie’s shoulders in an attempt to assuage him, not quite touching him but not completely removed, either. “No, noooo, no Donnie I love it, really, I do.” she set the phone aside and turned to give her friend her undivided attention.

“Then...then why won’t you..”

_Why won’t you kiss me?_

Donnie’s breathing picked up and he retreated into himself even more, any further and he’d disappear into his shell completely. He kept his gaze down, hoping the angle would conceal the fact that his face was on fire. He flushed hotly, a soft pink hue diffusing itself across his cheeks and down his neck. Donnie fidgeted and pursed his lips into a cute pout as he thought of a plan to get himself out of there.

“Why I won’t what, Donnie?” April asked again and Donnie looked up at her, eyes darting down for a split second to glance at her plush lips before going back up. Oh shit, he didn’t mean to do that. Was he obvious? Maybe she didn’t notice!

April’s eyes widened momentarily before she smiled, her eyes becoming hooded as she looked at her friend with mirth. “Ohhhh,”

_She noticed!_

“I see.” she said confidently. 

“You don’t see shit!” Donnie cried defensively, voice coming out shrill and panicky. “Get your eyes checked, Puff Ball!”

April stared lovingly at her friend behind her red rimmed glasses. “Is that why you’re being so pouty? Because, what?” she smiled, “You want a kiss?” 

The engineer kept his sharp eyes trained on the ground, never once allowing himself to meet the teasing gaze of his friend’s. “...maybe...” his response was quiet, strained against his tense mouth and April hummed. The brunette reached out and framed the sides of Donnie’s face with her warm hands. She traced the pads of her thumbs on the edge of his bandanna where cloth met skin and Donnie let out a small “oh…” despite himself.

“Of course, Dee. All you had to do was ask.” she smiled warmly before returning her smirk with something fierce. “Now,” she leaned in, “Where did you want this kiss?”. April used her hands to tilt Donnie’s crown towards her, placing a gentle kiss onto his forehead, right below his goggles. “Here?” 

The scientist blinked one, two, three times as his brain short circuited, completely overwhelmed by the affection he was receiving. “I...I-” 

“Orrr...here?”April lowered herself to position her lips at Donnie’s high cheekbone, pressing in a slow kiss and humming when she felt his shiver through her lips. She kissed him several times there, and Donnie for the life of him could not figure out just when he started purring.

“April-” he choked out before having the air knocked from him.

“Or what about..” the girl trailed off, adjusting herself so that her lips are poised just above Donnie’s lips.

“So close…!” his panicking mind thought.

“Here?” April kissed the tip of Donnie’s nose, laughing into it when his face all but exploded red. The scientist was certain he was going to die. He was going to die from heat exhaustion and April will have to live out the rest of her days as a murderer or a fugitive or both. His brothers would have to arrange a funeral for him, sending his body floating down the sewer on a bed of pizza boxes and dollar store flowers. Donnie knew this, internalized it, and should be pushing April away so he can get back to working like he always does, _alone_. 

The ninja’s lean arms twitched to do just that, but he looked up and saw the way April’s eyes were crinkling with her smile, the way they do when she’s over the moon with happiness, and he found that he couldn’t bring himself to do it. To do anything, really. 

So they stayed like that for a while, April humming soft kisses into his skin and Donnie just sat there and took it because he didn’t know what else to do. Her hands were still gently cupping his face, the soft pads of her index and middle fingers stroking the underside of his jaw, right where his neck started and he could feel the heat radiating from her palms. Donnie could never get over just how... _soft_ humans were. Specifically how soft April was, this girl could brawl out something fierce and put anyone in their place with a few swift kicks to the head, but she was also so incredibly tender and kind, especially in moments like this. Donnie’s eyes started to droop and he was suddenly feeling the full weight of his sleep deprivation and his friend’s specific brand of comfort until April’s voice was pulling him back. 

“Donnie? Donnie!”

“Hmmm..?” he blinked drowsily, one eye at a time as he peered into the charcoal irises of his best friend. He had a dopey smile on his face and was hunched forward, all but leaning into April as they kissed. 

“Gettin’ sleepy?” she asked fondly, tilting her head cutely to the side.  
  
“...yuh…” he said lamely and April laughed before pressing another kiss into his cheek. 

“Yeah? Then I’m sure you won’t mind if I kept kissing you.” her tone was pure honey, a sickly saccharine sweet that promised nothing but mischief. 

“Y-yeah…” Donnie choked out and April smiled against his cheek. She continued to kiss him and started to trail downwards, slowly making her way down his face until she reached the sharp angle of his jawline. Her plush lips pressed into the contours of his jaw and April’s fingers continued to rub soothing circles into his skin before one hand reached up and back to the top of his crown. Her perfectly manicured nails scratched lightly at his bandanna as she trailed down to reach the base of his head. The girl's finger twirled the sash of his bandanna before grabbing the knot gently, using it as leverage to tilt her scientist’s head back. 

April’s soft lips lowered from Donnie’s jawline to the thick muscle of his neck, she pressed warming kisses up and down the column of his throat and Donnie _purred_. “A-April, wait-” his eyes darted to the closed door to his workshop, knowing fully that it wasn’t locked and anyone could walk in at any given moment. 

Perfectly drawn brows peaked and Donnie’s eyes fluttered shut as April’s hand gripped the fastening knot of his bandanna tighter, craning his head back and exposing his throat even further. April’s breaths came out hot and heavy against Donnie’s neck, kisses becoming increasingly harder and sloppier as she sucked his pulse. 

Donnie’s cobalt eyes rolled behind his bandanna and his breathing was beginning to get ragged and wheezy. The engineer blearily opened his eyes and he felt his dick twitch against the entrance of his cloaca. “April...April wait, movie night...b-bros...can’t! Aprillllll…” his words started to slur together as he moaned in earnest. The girl felt the vibration against her lips and smiled softly, Donnie was just too cute sometimes. 

April moved from her place at her best friend’s neck and straightened to look at him fully. Donnie’s eyes followed her movements lethargically, not quite all there. His eyes were blown wide and glassy, the flush warming his cheeks diffused all the way down to his neck and past the chest plate of his shell. The perfect cherry hues of her lipstick stood out starkly against Donnie’s verdant skin, everywhere but his lips. April stared, wishing she could take a picture with her new phone but deciding against it to preserve the moment. She snuck her hand underneath his chin, scratching lightly before sliding it back, cupping the side of his face.

“Like I said, Dee,” she smiled sweetly. “If you want a kiss, just ask.”

Donnie gulped, mouth too dry and tongue too big and awkward to speak properly. “W-want...kiss.” he cursed himself internally, where did all of his brain cells go?

“Oh?” April’s grin turned mean and teasing. “But I just gave you a bunch!” 

“No, I want a kiss...here” he brought up a finger to his mouth and tapped it lightly. 

“Use your words, Dee.” 

The ninja tensed, shoulders rising as he took a deep breath.“Iwantakissonthelips!” he bit out in a rush and April laughed lightly, raising her other arm so she could cup her friend’s cute face with her hands earnestly. She’ll never get tired of this, tired of him. She’d stay here forever with him, teaching him how to love and be loved in the best way she knows how because Donnie is just so _good_ and he deserves everything the world could offer him and then some. 

“I want that, too.” she said and smiled as she pressed her plush lips to Donnie’s own. Her perfect lipstick was long gone, smeared over Donnie’s...everything but she couldn’t bring herself to care. There they stayed, in the middle of one genius’ secret workshop underneath the greatest city in the world, sharing a kiss that held the one million and one promises of their future together. 

The two parted after a few beats and April smoothed her hand against Donnie’s crown, basking in the blissed out expression on his face. “Alright,” she said softly, “Go get cleaned up and meet us in the den. Mikey is gonna kill us if we miss his showing of Jupiter Jim and the Last Crusade.” she gave him one last peck on the cheek before turning swiftly, reaching into her jacket pocket to clutch her lipstick with intentions to reapply. 

Donnie blinked and his eyes chased his best friend’s receding back until she walked through the sliding mechanical door, leaving him alone with his thoughts. 

God, he loved her. 

He sat there for a little while before stretching out his limbs. He detached his battle shell and sent it off to nestle into its charging port. The ninja sat in front of his computer, organizing some files quietly before jumping when he heard his workshop door open swiftly.

“Yo, Dee!” Leo called before rudely stepping into his space. “What’re you doing? We’re ready to start and-holy shit.” he stopped mid stride as he looked at his brother fully, lagging brain scrambling to make sense of the dozens of lipstick marks all over his face and neck. 

“Nardo, please don’t-”

“You look like you’ve been attacked by a swarm of horny bees!” Leo threw his head back and his boisterous laugh echoed off the crowded walls of the workshop. 

“Shut up!” Donnie cried before furiously rubbing his face to get rid of the offending markings. He checked his reflection in one of the monitors and much to his chagrin (and Leo’s amusement) they were just not coming off. 

“Oh my god,” they both said in unison, one voice clearly more ecstatic than the other. Leo grabbed his brother’s wrist, forcefully pulling him out of the lab and towards the common room.

“Come onnnn! We already made popcorn and April really wants you there.”

“She does?” Donnie stopped his struggling and looked at Leo earnestly. 

“Yeah, saved you a seat and everything,” he sniffed. “Said somethin’ about spooning or whatever.” Leo said easily before walking towards his family once more, one genius in tow.

Donnie looked down and smiled despite himself, knowing that he’s already lost this fight and realizing that he never really had a chance of winning in the first place. 

“Let’s go.”

**Author's Note:**

> Based on a drawing that my friend did! They love Donnie so I hope they enjoy this lol
> 
> idk turtle anatomy


End file.
